Our Fall Conference Speakers & Their Presentations

Forgiveness is uniquely experienced and defined according to our understanding at any given time. And it continues evolving as we evolve. By its very nature, creation requires forgiveness to oil and ease the experiences of life. To hold another in judgement imprisons us in judgement as well; holds us as unforgiven.

There is much that is wounding, enraging and confounding in our experience. However, in our time together we will hold it all as sacred wounding, gracious opportunity, holy ground.

We invite you to join us in expanding the possibilities that forgiveness and its accompanying gratitude and grace can offer us and our world. Through stories, exercises and the inspiration of our presenters you will come away with a renewed appreciation of the immense power you carry through being able to let go, forgive and access limitless compassion, both in life and—most imperatively—in death.(If you'd like to see the speakers and topics from last year's conference, click here.)

​"The Evolution of Forgiveness"

​Our understanding of forgiveness is ever-expanding. Based on the recognition that we create our earthly experiences according to the lessons sought by our souls, this presentation explores the energies of judgment, fear, projection and attachment that cause us to experience spiritual pain and the illusion that we are separate from the Divine.Using guided visualization and other tools, we'll work on connecting with higher guidance to assist us in "un-judging" ourselves and others. By releasing the concept of blame, and healing the emotional wounds and fear-based beliefs that we carry from one lifetime to the next, a new form of forgiveness can emerge in which there are no victims and no perpetrators... only souls journeying together on a path to wisdom and awareness. (For a brief video on this presentation, click HERE)

Terri Daniel, MA, CT is a clinical chaplain, ordained interfaith minister and end-of-life educator certified in death, dying and bereavement by the Association of Death Education and Counseling. Her focus encourages a more spiritually-spacious understanding of death and beyond. Terri conducts workshops throughout the U.S. to help the dying and the bereaved. Her work is acclaimed by physicians, hospice workers, grief counselors and clergy for its clarity on the process of dying and grieving, and its heartfelt depiction of consciousness beyond the physical body. Terri's unique form of "radical mysticism" incorporates elements of Buddhism, Shamanism, ancient pagan practices, Gnosticism and other spiritual traditions to break down limiting beliefs about forgiveness, divine judgment and negative experience. Terri is the author ofthree books on death and the afterlife, and is also the founder and president of the Afterlife Education Foundation and producer of the annual Afterlife Awareness Conference. She lives in Sebastopol, CA.

"The Long Journey of Forgiveness"

What’s karma got to do with it? Whatever we choose, evidently! The people and challenges of our lives often have a long and colorful history with us. Through the examples of three of Marcia’s PLR clients and their powerful past-life legacies, we will come to see the importance of releasing each other (and ourselves) from blame and regret. We will look at the changing nature of consciousness as we transform ourselves and step off the wheel of karma and onto the kinder path of grace. These dynamic stories are ones we all share and can identify with. It is only through achieving clarity and dwelling more frequently within the compassionate and forgiving heart that we free ourselves from suffering in life—and death. Indeed, dying with a light and forgiven heart is the magnificent, quiet gift we bestow upon ourselves.

Marcia Beachy, MS, LPC, is a licensed psychotherapist, hypnotherapist, author and ordained Interfaith Minister. She has been working in the field of conscious living and dying for over 30 years. Marcia is the founder and organizer of the Southern Colorado Conference on Conscious Living & Dying, inspired by the great need and the great opportunity we now have to awaken to who we truly are. Her books are Going Out in Style: A Guide to Planetary Departure and This Divine Classroom: Earth School and the Psychology of the Soul. The material in these books was deeply influenced by her study of consciousness through past-life regression work with clients. She has also produced a CD, Conscious Dying Meditation. She resides in Pueblo, CO.

"Self-Forgiveness First"

Deirdre (Dea) Maltby asks us to consider a crucial question: How can we offer forgiveness if we do not receive it from ourselves first? In like manner, how can we truly forgive others if we keep our own inner self captive with burdens of self-guilt or self-contempt? Embarking on an inner journey that includes crossing the threshold to self-forgiveness, can allow for some amazing discoveries. Self-forgiveness offers us new perceptions, understandings and appreciation of our own interactions with others along life’s path—and we find a deeper relationship with our Divine Source.

When we choose to walk through the doorway of forgiveness with honest self-reflection and inner dedication, we will find it leads to a miraculous and sacred space, a space of deepening love. She knows from her own experience that forgiveness truly IS the doorway to Freedom.

In 2008 Deirdre DeWitt-Maltby experienced a profound, life-changing, Near-Death Experience (NDE). It was the catalyst that thrust her onto a trek of discovery to find the self–love that had eluded her most of her life. She found by sharing her story many others seemed to relate to this often hidden inner burden. They too were interested in finding or deepening that love of self.

Deirdre shares her story via radio, lectures, and online. She supports and promotes the IANDS organization (International Association of Near Death Studies) by speaking to many local chapters and at their national conferences. She has authored two books connected to her NDE: While I Was Out… and This is for You - Whispers to the Soul. She has also contributed to an upcoming book out of England, The Transformative Power of NDEs. Her story was featured in part on the Biography Channel’s TV Series, “I Survived Beyond and Back” Dea, husband Dan, and beloved dog Reebok live in the mountain town of Salida Colorado.

"Forgiving the Unforgivable" - A Panel Discussion

Have you experienced something that profoundly affected you and that seemed too difficult or horrific to recover from? Did you feel you might never be able to release the experience or person from blame? That the rage, anger and sorrow would never go away? Perhaps you felt that you would never be able to forgive. Our courageous panel members will share how, through their difficult experiences, they discovered forgiveness and a more gracious and compassionate perspective.

Desiree Davis, devoted wife and mom, joins our panel to share the tragic, life-changing event in which she was offered a powerful choice. On Friday, December 13, 2013, her vibrant, beautiful daughter, Claire, was shot at Arapahoe High School, Centennial, Colorado. Claire died eight days later.

Instead of lashing out in anger or being destroyed by despair and grief, Desiree made the critical choice to forgive Karl Pierson, the boy who killed her daughter. She also chose to engage with State legislators to pass school safety legislation aimed at helping troubled youth in crisis. She feels that through the journey of forgiveness, she has been able to open a deeper door into love and understanding.

Desiree lives with her husband Michael and their two dogs in Centennial, CO.

Daeryl Holzer is a clairvoyant, author and spiritual teacher whose journey has taken her through years of bullying, betrayal and abuse. Her story will focus particularly on the events surrounding her mother’s death and the unexpected betrayal by her siblings and father. After many months of caretaking her mom, she was accused of mistreatment, stealing belongings, and other outrageous accusations including wanting her mother to die. Any defense of herself was met with more anger and blame. In the midst of grieving the loss of her mother, she also struggled to understand and come to terms with the resulting estrangement from her entire family. Daeryl has been able to hold the wounding from her family as an opportunity for empathy. She says, “Forgiveness has enabled me to move forward with grace.”

Daeryl is the originator of the SoulShift Healing Process. She lives and works in Bozeman, Montana.

Arnulfo “Chico” Gonzalez is a Viet Nam veteran, the survivor of two near-death experiences, and a retired cost engineering consultant. He has worked for NASA on the Orion Spacecraft and also for Lockheed Martin Astronautics and BP, among others. When he was 19-years-old, he volunteered to go to Vietnam. As a paratrooper and combat infantryman he lived the horror and fear of war and what it does to people. While in the jungle, he says, “I became numb. I didn’t know if anyone cared about me. I cried and prayed in silence. God was with me, whether I realized or not. He forgave me even if I didn’t feel I deserved his forgiveness. Since then, I have learned to forgive, as well.” Chico will also share briefly about his two NDEs. The first NDE, a distressing NDE, is the rarest type of NDE according to Greyson & Bush research findings at the International Assoc.of Near-Death Studies.

He has been married for 41 years to his wife Carol and lives in Falcon, CO.

Hosting / Officiating

Marcia Beachy, MS, LPC, is a licensed psychotherapist, author and ordained Interfaith Minister. She has been working in the field of conscious living and dying for over 30 years. Marcia is the founder of the Southern Colorado Conference on Conscious Living & Dying, inspired by the great need and the great opportunity we have now to awaken to who we truly are. She is the mother of three daughters and grandmother of three grandsons and resides in Pueblo, CO. ​

Reverend Roger Butts will open and close our day with a blessing of grace for all who attend, all who mourn and all who long to find more ease in their lives and their departure. Roger is ordained in the Unitarian Universalist tradition and is Associate Minister at Unity Spiritual Center in the Rockies and a Staff Chaplain at Penrose St. Francis Health Services in Colorado Springs. He lives in Colorado Springs with his wife, Marta Fioriti, their three children and two black labs.